1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to harvester receptacles, and, more specifically, to a compactor control for the compactor in a cotton harvester basket.
2) Related Art
Cotton harvesters typically include a large cotton receptacle and a compacting device to increase the density of the cotton in the receptacle. Pivoting vanes, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,126, and compacting augers such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,940 are operated manually from a control in the harvester cab. An example of a compacting system with a manually operated switch in the cab is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,932. Cotton spillage can be a problem with manually operated systems if the operator fails to activate the compacting device at the correct time. Spillage wastes cotton and requires time-consuming cleanup to clear the chassis and platform.
The operator has numerous functions to monitor, and the need for manual activation of the compacting control hinders concentration on other areas of the harvesting operation. Systems including a basket full sensor of the type shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,770,865 have provided a signal to the operator to activate the compacting augers, but still require operator attention and intervention. Various automatic timing arrangements such as preset timers to set the timing between consecutive compactor auger operations have also been available. These have alleviated some of the problems with purely manual operation but often do not provide the best compacting operation to optimize cotton density in the receptacle and reduce cotton spillage.